!['Elevation’: Anthony Mackie & Morena Baccarin Discuss Their Alien Invasion Thriller, ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’, ‘Captain America: Brave New World’ & More [The Discourse Podcast]](https://cdn.theplaylist.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/07102110/Elevation-Anthony-Mackie-Morena-Baccarin-Discuss-Their-Alien-Invasion-Thriller-%E2%80%98Deadpool-Wolverine-%E2%80%98Captain-America-Brave-New-World-More-The-Discourse-Podcast.jpg "'Elevation’: Anthony Mackie & Morena Baccarin Discuss Their Alien Invasion Thriller, ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’, ‘Captain America: Brave New World’ & More [The Discourse Podcast]")
In this week’s episode of The Discourse, host Mike DeAngelo attempts to make it to higher ground while discussing “Elevation.” The film follows a single father and two women who attempt a rescue mission in a post-apocalyptic world filled with alien monsters. The George Nolfi (“The Banker,” “The Adjustment Bureau”) film stars Anthony Mackie, Morena Baccarin, Maddie Hasson, Danny Boyd Jr., and more.
Stars of the film, Anthony Mackie (“Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” “Twisted Metal,” “The Hurt Locker”) and Morena Baccarin (“Firefly,” “Deadpool,” “Greenland”) join the podcast to discuss their roles in the thriller and what ultimately drew the two longtime friends to the film.
“[Anthony and I] actually went to college together. Fun fact, but, for me, it was the character. I liked this idea of a world gone quiet and people trying to survive. What happens when everybody’s mostly gone?” Baccarin shared. “And then I thought Nina as a character was so interesting. She was so unusual in that she sort of gave up and then found another reason for using her knowledge and her science and her passion to sort of like resuscitate a form of life for her, and she’s irreverent and a bit of a drunk and not your classic female lead.”
Mackie, a longtime collaborator of director George Nolfi, also discussed the project’s origins, which started on their previous film, “The Banker.”
“Actually, we were on the set of ‘The Banker’ and [George Nolfi] brought it up. He just floated it out there. Five or six months later, I got a script, and I jumped on board as an actor and producer. We started developing this character and creating this world together.
It was a fun place to be with someone with whom you have such a common interest, and that’s why the father-son relationship was so important. I’m a father of sons, and [George] is a father of sons. So we bonded on that. The idea of what will we do? How far would we go to protect our sons?”
Despite the serious, tense nature of the film, the duo managed to fall right back into their old ways on-set, creating a bit of a release from the rather grim source material.
“We do have a lot of fun together, and it sets the tone very nicely. Maddie [Hasson] and the three of us really had an amazing time,” Baccarin shared. “Mostly Maddie and I annoying the shit out of Anthony and trying to get a rise out of him. It was so easy. At one point, we both danced around him to ‘Running Up That Hill.’ He didn’t know the song and we were like, ‘Were you born on a different planet?!’ And he was like, ‘Get these crazy women off of me!’ We had a great time – the characters themselves were so dry and bare that once we had that rapport with each other, it was actually really quite fun and quite a release.”
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Baccarin was recently seen returning as her character, Vanessa, in one of the biggest films of the year, “Deadpool & Wolverine.” During the chat, Baccarin mentioned that despite being on-set very little, it did feel different from the previous two films before Disney took over the franchise from 20th Century Fox.
“Yeah, I was hardly onset. That was the big difference,” Baccarin joked. “No, I’m kidding. It was a huge film in general. You know, Marvel is a big studio and they do things a certain way. So it did feel very different from [the others]. I mean, you have to remember the first film was essentially an independent, big-budget film, relatively speaking. But not at the scale of what it is now. And we were making this film that was a little odd – like it was our sense of humor, but are other people going to think it’s funny? So it felt very, very different and very indie at the time, actually.”
Mackie is getting ready to lead his first Marvel film, himself, in the upcoming “Captain America: Brave New World,” which will also feature Harrison Ford stepping into the role of Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross after the passing of actor William Hurt, who previously played the role. Mackie discussed how Ford treated him on-set, which set the tone for the rest of the film.
“What was really interesting, and it shows the nature and the beauty of Harrison Ford – when he got to set, he pulled me aside, and he was like, ‘Hey kid,’ – I’m 46 years old. He goes, ‘Hey kid, this is your movie,” Mackie said. “He was like, ‘I’m here to support you. And I’m here to make sure after this movie comes out, everyone knows your name.’ And there are a lot of people on his level that would not do that. There are a lot of people at his scale of work who would not do that.
But from the first day he was on set til the last day when we wrapped, he literally treated me like I was number one. He literally let me have the set and literally walked beside me every day and showed me the respect that people would. You know, it’s still Harrison Ford. Nobody’s like, ‘Hey Harrison, get out of the way. We need Anthony,’ but he made it very clear that I was number one on the call sheet. And because of that, everybody else fell in line. So I have nothing but appreciation and admiration for him – for the way he handled himself and the way he handled the set.”
The Playlist Presents – Anthony Mackie and Morena Baccarin’s Film/TV Recommendation Playlist:
1.) Any Eddie Murphy film before “The Golden Child” (Anthony Mackie’s Pick)
2.) “Fried Green Tomatoes” (1991) – Directed By John Avnet (Anthony Mackie’s Pick)
3.) “Misery” (1990) – Directed By Rob Reiner(Anthony Mackie’s Pick)
3.) “The Gilded Age” (2022-Present) – Created By Julian Fellowes (Morena Baccarin’s Pick)
3.) “Nobody Wants This” (2024) – Created By Erin Foster (Morena Baccarin’s Pick)
“Elevation” hits theaters on Friday, November 8th. You can listen to the full interview below:
The Discourse is part of The Playlist Podcast Network, which includes The Playlist Podcast, Deep Focus, Bingeworthy, and more. We can be heard on Apple Podcasts, Soundcloud, Spotify, and most places where podcasts are found. You can stream the podcast via the embed within the article or click on the lead image at the top page. Be sure to subscribe and drop us a comment or a rating, as we greatly appreciate it. Thank you for listening.
